[This is the fourth post in a series about the Blessed Hope–the return of Jesus Christ.]

Not only is Christ coming, but Christians are going!

How can a Christian experience taking off in a jet on a beautiful day and not think about it? When we see peaceful white clouds floating across a perfect blue sky, we are reminded.

The Song of Solomon gives us one of the most romantic pictures of two loved ones being reunited and going away together.

“My beloved spoke, and said to me:

‘Rise up, my love, my fair one,

And come away.

For lo, the winter is past,

The rain is over and gone.

The flowers appear on the earth;

The time of singing has come,

And the voice of the turtledove

Is heard in our land.

The fig tree puts forth her green figs,

And the vines with the tender grapes

Give a good smell.

Rise up, my love, my fair one,

And come away!”

(Song of Solomon 2:10-13 nkjv)

We are going with Him!

It’s hard to wrap our minds around this. The word “rapture” is used by many Christians and the controversy surrounding it has been spun about like an end-over-end football.

Where does word ‘rapture’ come from? The Latin translation of the Bible uses the word “rapiemur” which means “we shall be carried away” or “we shall be snatched” (1 Thessalonians 4:17 lvb).

When this will happen or the exact order of things is a mystery. But one thing is sure, we will be carried away.

Think of the hard-working grape farmer, just ready to harvest a crop. Grapes and other small fruit are easy pickings for the sharp beaks of birds who will sweep in and devour, ruining the harvest. Our “snatching away” is like the farmer who quickly takes the smooth, fragrant fruit and hides it away.

Can you remember our mothers saying, “Don’t get carried away?” They often meant “don’t get too excited” or “don’t jump the gun.”

In thinking about the return of Jesus, it is okay to get excited. And since God, in His providence, is never early or a second too late, we won’t be “jumping the gun.”